Checking Out The New Precision Rifle "Vari-Flame"
Way back in 1844, in his book "Instructions To Young Marksmen, In All That Relates To The Improved American Rifle", author James R. Chapman wrote..."It is obvious that the weaker the detonating charge of the cap be, the better, provided it have heat enough to ignite the powder...".Thus, the debate over the amount of fire needed for optimum ignition and accuracy was being waged back then...even before real "primers" had been fully developed. Even so, with the end of the Civil War, the age of the contained cartridge rifle had begun, and the end of the 600 year-old muzzleloading rein was in sight. Still, ingenious muzzleloading riflemakers devised several different approaches to utilize the more reliable and hotter primers for igniting the charges of black powder loaded into a rifle of front-loaded design.The black powder that was the only muzzleloading propellant of the time was (and still is) an easier to ignite powder than today's modern substitutes. It is far more heat sensitive than powders such as Pyrodex, Triple Seven, American Pioneer Powder, GOEX Pinnacle or Black Mag 3. For sure-fire and more spontaneous ignition, today's new black powder substitutes simply need a hotter flame.But, how much fire becomes too much fire and could begin to affect accuracy?One devoted muzzleloading shooter and hunter who has given that concern much thought is Cecil Epp, the founder and owner of Precision Rifle Custom Muzzleloader Bullets, of Anola, Manitoba, Canada. A couple of years back, Cecil began offering a replacment breech plug (now available for several different popular rifle models) that actually chambers a primed cartridge case which utilizes a standard small rifle primer.Cecil does a great deal of shooting, testing the line of Precision Rifle saboted muzzleloading bullets the company produces, and had come to realize that often he would experience a flier for absolutely no reason. You see, when you load and shoot a muzzleloader as much as Cecil Epp, you develop loading practices that result in each and every load being as close to the same as humanly possible...precise powder charge, same amout of seating pressure on the ramrod, consistent ignition, etc., etc. And when this kind of care is taken, it seems even odder to such a seasoned shooter that, on occasion, a shot impacts two...three...four inches away from others...especially when that shooter knows that everything was done exactly the same as other shots in the group. A lot of things then become suspect. Could it have been the powder charge...could there have been a flaw in that particular bullet...or could it have been some inconsistency with the ignition. And the more Cecil studied the problem, the more he realized that with today's hotter primer ignition systems, the compression created by a fired cap was often enough to force the powder charge and seated bullet forward a fraction of an inch before the powder charge actually ignited. Accuracy wise, this would be like shooting a shot with a sabot and bullet that had not been properly seated over the powder charge.In my own testing a few years ago, I worked up an optimum load for one of my more accurate primer-ignited in-line rifles. And when the sabot and bullet were consistently seated with about 35 to 40 pounds of seating pressure, the rifle and load would consistently shoot inside of 1 1/2 inches at a hundred yards. However, when I then loaded the same rifle and load, varying the pressure used to seat the projectile over the powder charge by as much as 10 to 15 pounds (estimated), I could never get the muzzleloader to shoot inside of 2 1/2 inches. A hot No. 209 shotgun primer that moves a saboted bullet forward before the powder ignites has about the same affect on accuracy.More recently, Precision Rifle has introduced a unique concept dubbed the "Vari-Flame". These are resuseable heavy-duty No. 209 primer-sized brass "battery cups" that can be easily primed (and de-primed) with either a standard "Small Rifle" or "Small Pistol" primer. Which I have discovered produce more than ample fire to insure ignition with even the hardest to ignite of today's modern black powder substitutes, both loose grain and pellets. And which I also discovered, not to my surprise, tended to noticeably tighten my groups.One in-line rifle that I have been shooting a lot these days has been the .50 caliber Pedersoli "Denali" break-open model. This No. 209 primer-ignited rifle has been a consistent performer with a variety of bullets. And in preparation for an October elk hunt, I recently worked on loads with the saboted 300-grain Precision Rifle "QT" bullet...which also offered an opportunity to compare the "Vari-Flame" performance with standard No. 209 primer ignition.I was shooting a 110-grain charge of FFFg Triple Seven behind the swaged lead spire-point bullet, and shooting with standard Winchester No. 209 primers, I easily kept most hundred yard groups at 1 1/2 to 2 inches across. This is very acceptable accuracy. Even so, when I used the Precision Rifle "Vari-Flame", primed with a Winchester "Small Rifle" primer and the same exact load, loaded in the same exact manner, my groups tended to tighten nearly a full half-inch. Still, ignition seemed every bit as spontaneous.
My best group of the shooting session was actually shot while shooting with the "Vari-Flame" adapters primed with Winchester "Small Pistol" primers. The three 300-grain Precision Rifle "QT" bullets printed inside of an inch, right at .995" center-to-center. "Small Rifle" and "Small Pistol" primers are the same basic diameter, however the primers intended for use with small rifle cartridges, such as the .222 Remington, are approximately 10- to 15-percent hotter than the primers designed for use with certain handgun cartridges. Today's muzzleloading barrels are some of the finest ever produced. The precision, shallow rifling lands and grooves of the sabot-shooting bores, combined with nicely polished internal metal surfaces, results in less resistance between a tight-fitting sabot/bullet combination and the bore. This makes it easier than ever for an ignition system that produces a great deal of compression to cause a load to move forward slightly before the powder ignites. If you regularly experience an unexplainable flier, even though you are sure you loaded that round as carefully as any other you've shot, perhaps you are experiencing this problem. The "Vari-Flame" from Precision Rifle just could be the solution. For more information on this product, go to their website at the link provided below. - Toby Bridges, NORTH AMERICAN MUZZLELOADER HUNTING Visit The Precision Rifle Website At:
The Precision Rifle "Vari-Flame" adapter kit comes with 10 adapters, plus everything needed to prime and de-prime the adapters in a matter of seconds. A simple and easy to use system.
This old illustration of a circa 1860s Norman Brockway rifle shows an early primer ignition system. Note that this early long-range, high performance muzzleloader also features a true rifle scope as well.
The Precision Rifle "Vari-Flame" adapters are made of heavy duty brass and can be used 50+ times. The adpaters can be primed with either "Small Rifle" or "Small Pistol" primers.
Either "Small rifle" or "Small Pistol" primers deliver more than enough fire to spontaneously ignite either loose grain or pelletized black powder substitutes, such as the Triple Seven powders shown here.
This 1 3/4-inch hundred yard group was farily typical with the Pedersoli "Denali" rifle when using standard No. 209 primers to ignite 110 grain charges of FFFg Triple Seven behind saboted 300-grain Precision Rifle "QT" bullets.
Using the same powder charge, saboted bullet and loading procedures, HPML's Toby Bridges tightened his average group with "Denali" and the PR "Vari-Flame" by a half-inch. His best was this .995" cluster, achieved with "Small Pistol" primers in the reuseable adapters.
Test Report
Test Report
North American Muzzleloader Hunting
